


The Present

by NotManTheLessButNatureMore



Series: I Love You [3]
Category: Cormoran Strike Series - Robert Galbraith
Genre: F/M, Strike is an idiot, but also the birthday boy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-28 09:14:09
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16720533
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NotManTheLessButNatureMore/pseuds/NotManTheLessButNatureMore
Summary: “How did we end up here? I have a birthday cake hidden in the boot of the car and a six-pack of Doom Bar down my side of the wardrobe.” Robin sighed and slapped a hand against his chest.It's Strike's birthday and Robin's gift giving doesn't quite go to plan.... because Strike can be an insecure idiot sometimes.





	The Present

Robin was poised on the edge of the couch watching Strike’s face for any change. His grin had faded when she handed him the letter and he caught sight of the hospital address on it. With nothing more than a glance in her direction he had started to read it and hadn’t said anything since.

 

“Cormoran?” Robin tentatively said.

 

He didn’t look up, instead just stared at the letter even though Robin knew he’d finished reading it.

 

“Why did you do this?” His voice was measured and Robin suddenly felt her stomach drop.

 

“I... well, I thought you’d be happy.”

 

“We can’t afford this.” He threw the letter down on the coffee table and looked at her with dark eyes.

 

“Yes we can-“

 

“Robin...” His voice trailed off as he rubbed his forehead.

 

“I thought... I thought this was something nice. You need it, I thought you’d be happy.” Robin babbled and felt tears sting her eyes. _Don’t cry, you’re not a child!_ She had been so excited to give him the letter and put so much weight behind the value of it that the look on his face now felt like a physical punch.

 

“We can’t afford this, I can’t-“

 

“We can! Fincher paid us enough so that we’ll be able to put all the money from the other cases this month into our savings and the money I got from uncle Dennis-“

 

“No!” Strike’s voice was raised and Robin felt like the entire evening was sliding down a black hole.

 

“Cormoran-“

 

“We’re not wasting your money on my leg.”

 

“It’s not a waste, it’s your health.” Robin’s uncle Dennis, the eldest on her mum’s side had died of old age the previous summer and left a small but generous amount to his few nieces and nephews.

 

“I don’t need a new prosthetic-“

 

“Yes you do, it’s gotten loose since you lost weight and I know it doesn’t feel right anymore when you’re on it too long.” Robin pleaded. Over the past few months Strike’s ‘vegetarian bacon’ diet had led to him losing weight from his thighs as well as his stomach and Robin had noticed him doubling up on his prosthetic socks in the morning in a bid to relieve some of the discomfort of an ill-fitting prosthetic.

 

“I’ll get it through the NHS or the army like usual.” Strike stood and walked to the other side of the room.

 

“You said yourself it’ll take months to get an appointment that way.”

 

“It’s too expensive to go private. How did you even get an appointment without me knowing?”

 

“Vanessa’s friend Sıobhán works at-“

 

“How many fucking people knew about this before me?”

 

“Cormoran!” Robin stood and moved around the coffee table. They’d had arguments during their relationship and as much as they were trying not to let professional disagreements bleed into their private life it had inevitably happened. This was the first time he had cursed at her though.

 

A silence settled on the room. Strike’s shoulders slumped and Robin saw the fight go out of him.

 

“I’m sorry-“

 

“-I just thought...“

 

Strike shut his eyes and let his head drop.

 

“We’re a couple Cormoran, why wouldn’t I want to spend my money on you? Especially on something like this?” Robin walked towards him but stopped short of grabbing his hand.

 

“I don’t want.... I...” _C’mon you idiot, we talked about this_. One of their first official agreements as a couple had been to always say how they really felt when it counted. They had danced around the truth for long enough when they were just friends. Cormoran took a long deep breathe as Robin watched.

 

“I don’t want it to be like this.” Robin felt her stomach lurch as soon as the words left his mouth.

 

“What?” She said, begging the tears that she could feel coming not to fall. Surely he didn’t mean...

 

“I don’t want you to have to make sacrifices for me.”

 

“We’re a couple, we make sacrifices for each other all the time, that’s part of it.”

 

“I’m not talking about us ordering Chinese instead of pizza or me eating the last of the biscuits... Charlotte was never going to be around to hold my hand in a nursing home and I knew that.” Strike paused, not knowing how to continue but knowing that he must.

 

“It will start like this and then-“

 

“Oh you absolute idiot!” Robin huffed.

 

“What?”

 

“ _What_? Suddenly you’re a burden because you need the odd day off from tailing a suspect and we have to keep ice-packs in the freezer?” Robin moved towards him and stood tall.

 

“I love you! And you’d take that from me?”

 

“What?” He looked genuinely confused and a sad thought occurred to Robin.

 

“I love you. That doesn’t mean I run at the first sign of trouble and it doesn’t mean I leave just because you’ve lost all your hair and you’re on a liquid diet. You don’t get to take my love for you away.” Robin’s outburst seemed to reverberate around the small sitting room. Strike looked away and furrowed his brows.

 

“Would you leave me? When I get old and everything heads south and I need a stair lift just to make it to bed, would you leave me?” Robin said, quieter this time.

 

“Of course not.” _I’ll be beside you til the day I die_ , he wanted to add.

 

“So why would you ever be a burden to me? Why would I ever leave you?” Robin’s words seemed to hang in the air and Strike felt a heaviness lift.

 

They watched each other for a long moment. Strike reached a tentative hand across the distance towards Robin’s and his chest, as it always did, warmed when she grabbed his hand and pulled him close.

 

“How did we end up here? I have a birthday cake hidden in the boot of the car and a six-pack of Doom Bar down my side of the wardrobe.” Robin sighed and slapped a hand against his chest.

 

“Because I’m an idiot who forgot how amazing you are.” Strike mumbled into Robin’s hair as she wrapped her arms around his chest.

 

“I thought you were breaking up with me you bastard.” Robin laughed.

 

“Never.”

 

“Even when you go senile?” Robin jeered.

 

“I promise your name will be the last word on my lips.” Strike kissed the top of Robin’s head.

 

“You’re-“

 

“-an idiot?” Strike guessed.

 

“A romantic, cheesy idiot.” Robin smiled.

 

“I’m sorry. You were excited and I ruined it.” Strike winced.

 

“It’s not ruined if you go to the appointment.” Robin held her breath.

 

“I will.”

 

“Good.”

 

“You mentioned cake and beer?” Strike whispered into her ear. Robin laughed and pulled him out towards the kitchen.

 

“I love you, birthday boy.”

 

“I love you too.”

**Author's Note:**

> As always, apologies for any mistakes - I only discovered this morning (via Twitter) that today was Cormoran's birthday so this was quickly written out this evening. Where I am there's still a few minutes left of Strike's birthday so thankfully I've made my deadline :)
> 
> Thanks again for kudos and comments - they do mean a lot :)


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